In my opinion, a main purpose of a final examination in a semester-long course is to provide you with a chance to take stock in the work you've done in the class over the semester and apply new understandings and skills to the topic at hand, i.e. American Public Education. The syllabus for this course begins with a summary of the course's scope:
"The goal of this course is for students to develop and share an understanding of education in American society, to begin to analyze educational principles and practices, and to apply these principles to understand and form a reasoned opinion about current educational reform efforts. Students will be introduced to the complex nature of the American public school system as they research and describe Rhode Island educational contexts and policies. The persistent inequities in American education are a major theme of the course, and the similarities and differences among Rhode Island schools are examined and discussed."
We all have our opinions about school which are strongly influenced by our past experiences. In this examination, you are expected to move past your deeply held beliefs about education to include knowledge from reputable sources, including our course readings, information about RI Schools gleaned from reputable sources, and your own scholarly research from our last projects.
Exam Structure
In this year's exam, you will be given several opinion/editorial articles from reputable sources, of which you can choose one. Your task will be to express your reasoned reaction to this article by answering some guiding questions about situation described in the article using only sources developed in the course.
1. Be sure your essay has an introduction. Introduction should include:
A "hook" (a statement that engages the reader in the problem described in the article)
Thesis statement
Roadmap (A "preview" sentence that previews the topics discussed in the essay)
2. A brief summary of the argument in the editorial, article, or blog.
3. An explanation of how this issue is (or may be) relevant in Rhode Island schools.
4. Your reasoned response to the main points or argument of the article. Your reasoning should construct an argument based on sources from the course. These sources should include:
Course readings: Bain, Suskind, Ripley, Ravitch, RI Strategic Plan, Game of School chapter, etc.
Our reading note summaries from the sources listed above.
Articles that you have collected in your PKB
Your (and your classmate's) own products: Academic autobiographies, Context reports, RI Strategic Plan Project, etc.
5. A conclusion
6. A bibliography.
At least five references.
All citations should be in APA style. Note: Zotero can be used to add citations to a Google Document. Zotero will add the inline citations as well if you hold the "option" key down while you drag the zotero record into your text.
Note: Additional questions that must be addressed may be added on exam day. Expect the unexpected!
Once you have written your response, you will "trade papers" with your peer editor by sharing your google document with him or her. They can add comments, edits, etc to your draft. You can use their edits to finalize your paper.
Introduction
In my opinion, a main purpose of a final examination in a semester-long course is to provide you with a chance to take stock in the work you've done in the class over the semester and apply new understandings and skills to the topic at hand, i.e. American Public Education. The syllabus for this course begins with a summary of the course's scope:"The goal of this course is for students to develop and share an understanding of education in American society, to begin to analyze educational principles and practices, and to apply these principles to understand and form a reasoned opinion about current educational reform efforts. Students will be introduced to the complex nature of the American public school system as they research and describe Rhode Island educational contexts and policies. The persistent inequities in American education are a major theme of the course, and the similarities and differences among Rhode Island schools are examined and discussed."
We all have our opinions about school which are strongly influenced by our past experiences. In this examination, you are expected to move past your deeply held beliefs about education to include knowledge from reputable sources, including our course readings, information about RI Schools gleaned from reputable sources, and your own scholarly research from our last projects.
Exam Structure
In this year's exam, you will be given several opinion/editorial articles from reputable sources, of which you can choose one. Your task will be to express your reasoned reaction to this article by answering some guiding questions about situation described in the article using only sources developed in the course.
1. Be sure your essay has an introduction. Introduction should include:
2. A brief summary of the argument in the editorial, article, or blog.
3. An explanation of how this issue is (or may be) relevant in Rhode Island schools.
4. Your reasoned response to the main points or argument of the article. Your reasoning should construct an argument based on sources from the course. These sources should include:
5. A conclusion
6. A bibliography.
Note: Additional questions that must be addressed may be added on exam day. Expect the unexpected!
Once you have written your response, you will "trade papers" with your peer editor by sharing your google document with him or her. They can add comments, edits, etc to your draft. You can use their edits to finalize your paper.
Reference: Purpose of School Excerpt
Example Exam
The Exam Process
- Choose a Peer Editor - Sign up as pair w/ Dr. Fogleman
- Choose ONE article in the linked folder analyze. NOTE: Peer editors CANNOT write about the same article.
- LINK TO FOLDER WITH ARTICLES
Peer Editing Pairs: (Please group yourselves)Exam Documents (I will add links here on exam day)